Left I on the News

The post just below this one castigates one Knight-Ridder reporter; this one will praise another. Today's San Jose Mercury News carries an article by reporter Dion Nissenbaum on the subject of Palestinians in Gaza who are waiting to reclaim their lands which have been seized by the Israelis for outposts, checkpoints, and settlements. It's an interesting, and sympathetic, article, a rare occasion in and of itself; the number of articles in the American corporate media on events in Israel and Palestine which even name a Palestinian, nevertheless interview one and portray him or her sympathetically, is vanishingly small. But that per se probably wouldn't have occasioned this post (although I do recommend the article). Here's the phrase, buried in the middle of the article, which caught my attention [emphasis added]:

"Others saw homes seized as part of buffer zones used to protect the 8,500 Israelis living -- in defiance of international law -- amid 1.3 million Palestinians in the territory Israel took during the 1967 Six-Day War."

Now to readers outside of the United States, the idea that Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank are in defiance of international law is probably common knowledge. It's an unquestioned fact. Nevertheless, I'll wager that readers have a hard time finding that phrase in the American corporate press; indeed, perhaps we'll have a contest, with a prize (a hearty congratulations) to the first reader who can find any similar reference. If they can, they'll be one up on Google News.

In the meantime, congratulations to Dion Nissenbaum.